The present application relates generally to the field of electromagnetic radiation and more specifically to determining performance characteristics for materials in response to exposure to emitted electromagnetic radiation.
Electromagnetic radiation (EMR) is a form of energy having both electric and magnetic components. EMR may be emitted from an EMR source and absorbed and/or reflected by an EMR-sensitive material.
One category of EMR-sensitive materials includes photoluminescent materials. Photoluminescent materials may absorb energy, or photons, from EMR, store that energy, and release energy in the form of visible light, among other things. For instance, materials colloquially referred to as “glow in the dark” materials may comprise photoluminescent materials.
Another category of EMR-sensitive materials includes photovoltaic materials. Like photoluminescent materials, photovoltaic materials may absorb energy from EMR. Photovoltaic materials may be configured to facilitate the conversion of absorbed energy from EMR into electricity. For instance, one common use of photovoltaic materials is solar arrays and panels.
Yet another category of EMR-sensitive materials includes materials sensitive to EMR outside of the visible light spectrum or otherwise having a low illumination level and configured to facilitate the conversion of sensed EMR into visible light and/or otherwise enhance the sensed EMR. These EMR-sensitive materials may be present in enhanced vision devices, such as night vision goggles and binoculars, among other things.
EMR-sensitive materials may not operate optimally outside of certain wavelength ranges, thus it may be advantageous to verify that a given EMR-sensitive material will operate as desired within a predetermined area of a structure or vehicle. For instance, it may be necessary to test an EMR-sensitive material, such as photoluminescent materials in an aircraft, to verify adherence to operational guidelines. Testing the EMR-sensitive material may comprise performing multiple tests in a plurality of situations and orientations and may result in significant time and monetary expenditures. This testing and retesting may comprise exposing EMR-sensitive materials to given EMR during a predetermined duration of time, and then measuring the amount of time during which the EMR-sensitive materials operate within acceptable thresholds. For example, as new lighting systems are installed in an aircraft, it may be necessary to retest the photoluminescent materials to verify compliance with minimum required standards. Additionally, it may be necessary to let the EMR-sensitive materials return to initial levels prior to testing differing scenarios.